Raised in Dufferin County, Dan Needles is a writer who explores life where city and country meet. He is the author of the Wingfield Farm series of stage plays which have been performed across Canada and the U.S. continuously over the last 34 years. Many of his plays have been performed on the Theatre Orangeville stage. His latest, The Last Christmas Turkey – The Musical  with composer Clive Vanderburgh set a new box office record for the theatre last year. True Confessions from the Ninth Concession, released in 2017 by Douglas and McIntyre, is a collection of his magazine writings for Harrowsmith, In The Hills and other publications. Dan won the Leacock Medal for Humour in 2004 and was appointed to the Order of Canada in 2016 for a body of work that celebrates the people of rural Canada.

Ian Bell is a native of Waterford Ontario, a musician, visual artist and former museum curator.

As a folk musician Ian Bell has performed across Canada and in the United States since the late 1970s. He has appeared at many folk festivals across Canada and abroad and was a founding contributor to Stuart McLean’s Vinyl Café, Fresh Air and other CBC radio programs.

Following the release of three CDs of original material, Ian has created two recordings of traditional songs and tunes – My Pious Friends & Drunken Companions and his latest, Forget Me Not When Far Away – a collection of songs of the Great Lakes. Ian’s latest CD is a just-released live collection of songs and stories, Saturday Night In Villa Nova.